

The 400 million N95 masks amount to more than half of the 750 million stored in the Strategic National Stockpile, a figure that tripled over the past year as the White House sought to boost reserves.ĭoes this mean I should no longer wear other types of masks? history," Dawn O'Connell, assistant secretary for preparedness and response at HHS, wrote in a blog post Friday. "This effort represents the largest deployment by the Strategic National Stockpile to date and it's also the largest deployment of personal protective equipment in U.S. The masks come from the United States' Strategic National Stockpile, maintained by HHS, which means the federal government paid for them. "Additional N95 masks are also for sale at our pharmacy locations if people want/need more." If the masks are at no cost to me, who paid for them? "Each Hy-Vee store has designated employees to personally hand out up to three masks per person we haven't had an issue with people attempting to take more than the limit of three provided by HHS," Christina Gayman, a spokesperson for Hy-Vee, wrote in an email. There have been no issues with people trying to take more than the allocated number of N95 masks at Hy-Vee locations, a company spokesperson told CNN on Monday.

WALGREENS COVID VACCINE MISSOURI FREE
"We are pleased to partner with the Administration to make N95 masks in varying sizes available free of charge at participating Walgreens locations while supplies last," a Walgreens spokesperson wrote in an email to CNN on Monday. Walgreens expects that free N95 masks will be available at some locations starting Friday, according to a company spokesperson. Masks also are expected to start arriving at Southeastern Grocers locations as early as Friday, and they'll be available at Fresco y Más, Harveys Supermarket and Winn-Dixie in-store pharmacies.ĬVS pharmacies are also expected to receive and begin distributing free N95 masks in the coming weeks as supply from the federal government comes in, spokesman Matt Blanchette told CNN on Monday. Some of the first masks arrived in the Midwest on Friday, including at Hy-Vee grocery stores in Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, Missouri, Kansas, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Nebraska and at Meijer stores in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky and Wisconsin. Participating pharmacies include Hy-Vee, Meijer, CVS, Walgreens and Kroger. The masks will be available at a number of local pharmacies and community health centers, a White House official told CNN. Here's what you need to know about getting a free N95 mask through this program: Where can I find free N95 masks? The masks are arriving at their destinations with accompanying flyers and signage from the US Department of Health and Human Services, which paid for the masks. The program is expected to be fully up and running by early February.

The program is part of the Biden administration's effort to distribute 400 million free N95 masks from the Strategic National Stockpile via pharmacies and community health centers. The rollout of free N95 masks for the public began this week across the United States, with some pharmacies already handing out the masks and others expecting to do so in the coming days. "This is the largest deployment of personal protective equipment in US history," the official said.
